1.5 stars
This did not deliver.
I liked the cover and the synopsis because it sounded snarky and fun and a bit mysterious, but that's not what I got. I got juvenile dialogue with a group of "frenemies" with basically the same personality (I couldn't differentiate them, to be honest), which made me not care about any of them or the plot.
The jokes didn't land, and the mystery part was lacking, so overall, I didn't enjoy this one.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely loved this book! It was so easy to follow what was happening but never boring. I loved getting to know all the hens and secrets and definitely didn't see the end coming.

Fab 5 star read for me

That was an experience. Tansy, Lauren, Saskia, Dominica and Farah were such a messy, insane, friendship group tied together by their past and secrets and so freaking dysfunctional as a unit and individually. The murder mystery kept me guessing right until the end when it all fell into place. This writing was entertaining and funny and the characters were equal parts likable, horrible and relatable. Fun read 3⭐️

This was such a wild, unexpected ride in the best way possible.

Lauren, Saskia, Dominica, Farah and Tansy have been friends for basically their entire lives, and now they're all grown up with their own lives and dramas, each wondering whether they even still like each other at all. They reunite for Tansy's hen do, but a death in the bridal party marks the start of a series of murders within the group and everyone is a suspect.

Sometimes you just a need an entertaining, messy read, and this was just perfect. The writing perfectly captures the chaos that is unfolding in the story, the characters are so interesting and captivating in their own ways, and the plot itself is so engaging and demands your attention from start to finish. Each woman had their secrets and it all unraveled at a good pace to keep you on your toes and want to know more as it all slowly falls into place.

I do think the story dragged a bit in the middle, and things seemed to be a little dragged out at certain points, while the ending feels a bit rushed and quite abrupt. I was still very hooked and quite literally couldn't put it down, so that definitely speaks for itself. The twists were good, some more shocking than others, and everything just clicked perfectly by the end of the story.

Many thanks to Headline & Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review!

I'll be honest what first drew me to this book was the cover and the title. Unfortunately I didn't like what was inside as much as the cover.
When this starts we get all the characters dumped on us at once and as none of them are well defined, or have any backstory, I really struggled to differentiate them. This then continued throughout the whole book. Which one is talking now? Who is she? Not a clue.
Because of this I was never invested in the plot or cared about the characters. One of them died? Oh well. Didn't know which one she was anyway so it didn't matter to me.
Whilst this is trying to depict life long female friendships, none of the characters actually seemed to like each other that much.
As this is written by a comedian, I was hoping we would get some good humour. Unfortunately this was a fail as well. There were some lines that did make me smile but overall it all felt pretty juvenile.
Don't be fooled into thinking this is a thriller or murder mystery. This felt to me much more like contemporary fiction. It is all about weddings with a tiny bit of murder thrown in. It concentrated on that so much it did feel repetitive and it didn't need to be over 400 pages long.
The ending also did feel rushed to me, I had to go back a page to see if I missed something. I didn't.
So, whilst this was a total flop for me, I wasn't exactly having a great time reading it.

I was hooked on this book from that opening email which really set the tone of the whole book and then I just flew through it.

I really enjoyed how complex these women were and how they were all deeply flawed and but still at their core had each other’s back because that is just what you do when you’ve been friends for over 30 years.

I had my strong suspicions on a couple of the characters from quite early on, however the story managed to prove a couple of them completely wrong and I was surprised by a couple of the turns that it took.

It did feel a little bit slow in the middle but picked up again quite quickly. I also will say that the ending did feel a bit rushed, like all of a sudden all the loose ends had to be tied up, but that didn’t detract from my overall enjoyment of the story.

This was a really fun and enticing read that had me hooked from start to finish. The plot moved fast and it was incredibly thrilling. I really enjoyed all of the characters too.

This isn't my usual book, but sounded good. At first I thought it was going to be a lighthearted comedy, but then it changed to a more dramatic read. There were lots of characters all with intertwined stories that got quite confusing. You did get me thinking the wrong killer at the end too.

Gripping, chilling and very, very satisfying
Superb writing from this author, a very eye catching cover, this book will go far, 5 stars. Blindingly excellent ... This book should come with a disclaimer as once you start reading you aren’t going to want to walk away.

Murder on the Menu..
A spiritual hen party to die for in this frivolous murder mystery edged with humour. As five friends gather at a woodland getaway to celebrate forthcoming nuptials, resentments and grudges will be exposed, and murder will be on the menu. The question for them, as bodies pile, is who exactly is capable of such a heinous crime? With a deftly drawn cast of characters, a swiftly moving plot and a narrative with a fair abundance of one liners, this is both an entertaining and enjoyable read.

This was a such a good book , fast paced full of twists. Just when things fit together BAM turns out it's not them.
Tansy is off to her hen do ,a wellness retreat but when a party of hens and alcohol mix together tansy is found dead . Who did it as this group of friends all of secrets ?is it farah a woman who is trying to live well above her means and is now in debt ? saskia with a secret that could ruin her family? Dominica who's been messing around with someone she shouldn't? Lauren who just can't get over a guy who gaslight her for fun or Eva a friend they've barely known but is suddenly Tansys best friend.? Or maybe tansys death wasn't an accident and the killer will strike again to uncover their darkest secret they all share

Thank you to NetGalley for the E-ARC.
What can go wrong when five ‘best friends’ with a dark secret keeping them together start to show cracks around the edges? A lot, apparently! This was a really fun read with a couple of actual laugh out loud moments, plenty of murders and a few red herrings. The ending was a little rushed and there were a couple of questions left unanswered, but I’d definitely recommend it.

Such an enjoyable read. Keeps you guessing and on your toes. Plenty of funny parts throughout as well as the thrill/investigation.

Rating: 1.3/5

Having read the synopsis, I was looking forward to a fun, entertaining murder mystery that would perhaps be a little tongue-in-cheek. Sadly, not for the first time, the end result was far less satisfying than the blurb had led me to hope.

Author, Kate Weston, has previously written young adult (YA) fiction, but has decided to venture into the adult market with "You May Now Kill the Bride". Unfortunately, although this may be a little bit more grown up than YA fiction, it isn't by very much. This is, perhaps, the book equivalent of someone in their late teens or early twenties thinking they have left their puerile adolescence behind, but without realising just how immature their behaviour still is.

Although the women at the centre of the story have been friends since they were very young schoolchildren, they don't actually behave as though they like each other very much. In fact, I am sure that element is deliberate on the part of the author. However, nor are any of them in the least bit likeable from a reader's perspective either - not that it necessarily matters, as I have read plenty of enjoyable books where the protagonists were quite obnoxious and the appeal came from seeing them get their deserved comeuppance. The problem here was that I not only found myself not warming to the characters, but also that they simply didn't interest me.

It didn't help that the humour failed to land with me. To quote a reference to one of the book's protagonists, Dominica, I 'found it lacking in comedic content'. The writer seems to think that it is cool and edgy to litter the dialogue with swear words and references to sexual organs. Used cleverly (and far more sparingly than is the case in this book), there may well be some amusement in this approach, but when it is done so frequently and in such a scattergun fashion, it just becomes as tiresome as watching the famed one-trick pony. There may be readers out there who enjoy this book, but I was just glad to get to the end.

As ever, I would still like to convey my thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review. It is a pity I was not in a position to pass more favourable comment on this occasion.

If you go out to the woods today, you’re in for a big surprise! A hen party turns deadly in this excitingly dark thriller; mixing the best parts of a locked-room mystery, small town drama and modern contemporary storytelling to make something so much fun despite all the murder and other nasty surprises.

There was a special kind of erratic energy that was masterfully set up in the first few pages with emails and texts about wedding planning and hen do organising that were so intense and highly strung I was waiting for someone to snap right there - and this energy lingered all the way through. And as slowly learn about these women and their busy modern lives, crushing expectations and social facades I’m just not sure who wouldn’t crumble under the pressure.

We jump between the less than relaxing retreat and the aftermath and their younger years, each hen taking the spotlight for a moment in a way that felt a little messy at first but grew on me once I’d settled in, giving us little moments to try and piece together to complicated threads that bind these women, the secrets they keep and hide from each other and the suspicion just kept jumping from one person to the next. It’s a bit of a slow-burn, going through the motions of life after the hen do until everything starts to go wrong again.

It almost reminded me of if Pretty Little Liars was all grown up and with less predatory teachers (barf) - especially as we see the dynamics of the group play out, the leaders, the followers, the ones who have had enough - but which would have more of a reason to kill? If you’re a fan of Celia Laskey or Nina Milns, you’ll love this killer read.

This was funny in parts and I think most people can relate to having a group of childhood friends where deeply entrenched roles end up becoming permanent.

I liked this book and while it felt a little too long and a little bit confused at times I wanted to see how the girls fared.

A fun, thrilling, comedic romp. Pack this one in your suitcase for the summer and find yourself hooked in from start to end

Book review : You May Now KIll The Bride: by @kateelizabethweston .
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Their hangovers may fade, but this is a hen party they’ll never forget...

Lauren, Saskia, Dominica, Farah and Tansy have been friends since nursery. They wonder if that was the last time they all actually liked each other.

Reunited as bridesmaids at Tansy’s spiritual hen party in the woods, it doesn’t take long before old grudges begin to surface. Not to mention the secret they’ve been hiding for twenty years..
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Funny things happen I was in the middle of reading this book when my sister asked me to be her bridesmaid.
After reading this I thought god please don’t let my sisters hen do be anything like this . This must be the worst hen do ever . Some of the characters frustrated me so much , I laughed as everyone knows those kind of people.
This book was fantastic, even though it was a thriller there were bits that made me laugh out loud .
I can see this being such a big hit this summer as it’s a book that when you start it you get so engrossed in the story . Only down fall with this was that I was not sitting in the sunshine with this book.
I can’t wait to read other work by @kateelizabethweston .
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Thank you so much to @kateelizabethweston @headlinebooks @netgalley for my early wish . I appreciate the opportunity to read these proofs.
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#thriller #bridetobe #book #booklovers #bookaddict #bookstagram #bookbloggers #bookstagram #readmorebooks #booklovers

What a rip roaring ride through a group of women’s friendships to adulthood.
All of the characters were well written and some were just horrible but that adds to the tension in this book, and in this story.
I really enjoyed this - thank you for granting my wish., I just reviewed You May Now Kill the Bride by Kate Weston. #YouMayNowKilltheBride #NetGalley

When you reach for this book you can expect a dark and twisted journey through the complexities of friendship, secrets and murder, with just a touch of humour added to the mix. The story begins with a seemingly innocent hen party for Tansy, set against the picturesque backdrop of the woods. However, as the narrative unfolds, it becomes clear that this celebration is anything but ordinary.
The author introduces you to a group of childhood friends – Lauren, Saskia, Dominica, Farah and Tansy – whose bonds have weathered the test of time, though perhaps not unscathed. The narrative is laced with nostalgia as the friends come together as bridesmaids for Tansy’s spiritual hen party. (personally, I think a spiritual hen party sounds terrible and I would not wish that on anyone – just saying…) The idyllic setting, however, quickly transforms into a stage for the eruption of long-buried grudges and a shocking twenty-year-old secret that threatens to unravel the fabric of their friendship.
The story takes a sinister turn when Tansy, the bride-to-be, meets an untimely end after consuming a poisoned cacao drink. The hangovers from the contraband vodka mane fade, but the gravity of their situation intensifies as the body count rises. The friends find themselves trapped in a deadly game, realising that the killer is among them. The tension escalates as suspicion, fear and paranoia grip the group, forcing them to confront the harsh reality that one of their closest allies may be responsible for the murder.
This author beautifully weaves together the elements of suspense, mystery ad dark humour, keeping you on the edge of your seat. With vivid descriptions and cleverly crafted plot twists, she keeps you hooked right to the end. She expertly navigates the delicate balance between tension and intrigue, making this an unputdownable narrative.
The characters are well-drawn, each with their own flaws and hidden motives, adding layers to the story. I loved the navigation between present-day crisis and the flashbacks to their school days, gradually revealing the intricacies of their relationships and the events that led to this fateful moment.
“You May Now Kill the Bride” is a riveting and unpredictable thriller that explores the fragility of friendships, the consequences of buried secrets and the lengths to which people will go to protect themselves. The author’s storytelling skills shines as she crafts a narrative that is equal parts chilling and captivating, making this book a must-read for fans of psychological suspense and dark comedy. The bride throws her bouquet, you will be left wondering who, if anyone, will emerge unscathed from this deadly game of matrimony.